Collapsible tube.



-"W. C. HIERING.

COLLAPSIBLE TUBE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 21. 1915.

Patented Jan. 14, 1919.

WIT/(E8858:

, m/vs/vro/r ATTORNEY UNITED STATES PATENT if WILLIAM C. HIERING, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

COLLAPSIBLE TUBE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patgniged Jan, 14, 1919 Application filed January 27, 1915. Serial No. 4,587.

' clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make, construct, and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to numerals of reference marked thereon, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to collapsible tubes for plastic materials or liquids, such as paints, ointments, oils, pastes and the like, whereby the material contained in the tube may be pressed out of an opening at one end.

' The primary object of my invention is to provide a simple, eflicient and inexpensive closure which firstly can readily be applied to the end of the tube for closing the same, preventing leakage at the end where the tube is closed, and secondly, owing to the construction of the closure, it is possible to roll up the body of the collapsible tube with great smoothness, and thus .prevent wrinkling or puckering of the walls thereof, while at the same time securing a complete expulsion of the contents.

In the accompanying drawings, in which a preferred embodiment of my invention is illustrated,

Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a collapsible tube embod ing my invention.

Fig. 2 represents a ragmentary edge elevation of the same, the upper part of the tube being broken away and the lower part of the tube being shown in section.

Figs. 3 and 4 represent respectively, front and end elevations, enlarged, of the closure.

Similar letters of reference refer to like parts throughout the specification and drawin s. g

In the drawings, (1 represents an ordinary collapsible tube such as is used for containing plastic paints, oils, pastes and the like, and which may be made of flexible, rolled sheet metal, having the usual contracted outlet at one end covered by a screw cap I). In stead of folding one end of the collapsible tube over upon itself after filling it, as commonly done, I bring the said ends together smoothly and evenly in two layers, as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings, and insert the same within the channel-shaped sealing portion 0 of the closure d, which is shaped as illustrated in Fig. 4 of the drawings, to facilitate the easy insertion of the smoothly and evenly flattened ends of the tubular body, and thereafter by means of suitable tools, securely sealing said ends in said channel-shaped portion 0 of the closure, as illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings.

It is not necessary to cement the ends together, though this may be done, if desired.

The channel-shaped portion 0 of the closure 03 may be provided with holding means e of any convenient form, and forced out'from the material of which the closure is made, to provide additional means for securing the partstogether, and to prevent accidental sepIaration of the same.

he closure is preferably made from sheet metal,.and the shape lends itself read- -ily to manufacture by the use of suitable dies. The closure d is also provided with a curved extension f, projecting from the channel-shaped sealing ortion c, which serves as a spring guide or the rolling up of the discharged portion of the tube and the longitudinal edge 9 of the guide or extension f, immediately after the closure has been given the slightest turn in the direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 2 of the drawings, grips the tube and further turning flattens and smoothens the tube, thereby forcing the contents of the same toward the discharging end thereof.

Experience has demonstrated that the organization above described is a highly efiicient one, and While the device shown and described is the'preferred embodiment of my present invention, I do not wish to be limited to the exact details of construction and combinatiom'as obvious modifica' tions thereof will reveal themselves to those skilled in the art, and such departures from what is herein described and claimed, I consider as within the scope and terms of my claims' I claim:

1. As an improved article of manufacture, a tube having a collapsible tubular body and a closure for the bottom thereof, said closure comprising a channel-shaped sealing portion into which the flat bottom ends of the collapsible'tube are inserted, gripping prongs integrally formed on the free end of said channel-shaped sealing portion, said gripping prongs projecting into said channel-shaped sealing portion and adapted to form additional holding means when the Walls of said channel-shaped sealing portion are forced together, said channel-shaped sealing portion, together With the gripping pron 5 thereof, forming the only closure for tie bottom of said tube and an integral curved portion extending from one side of said channel-shaped sealing portion, away from and then toward the other side of said channel-shaped portion so as to leave an open space, whereby upon rolling said curved portion upon the tube the contents of the tube will be forced toward the discharge end of the tube.

2. As an improved article of manufacture, a tube having a collapsible tubular body and a closure provided with a channelshaped'sealing portion to seal one end of said tubular body, said closure forming the only seal for the bottom of said tube, and a curved resilient extension formed integrally with one side of said sealing portion, extending around the same and terminating short of the other side of the sealing portion adapted to serve as a spring guidefor the rolling up of the discharged. portion of the tube and to force the contents of the tube toward the discharging end of the tube at the slightest turning or rolling of the spring guide upon the tube.

This specification signed and witnessed this 25th day of January, 1915.

.VVILLIAM C. HIERING.

Witnesses:

FREDK. C. FISCHER, CLIFFORD A. ALnIsToN. 

